Mild regurgitation is not a serious thing. I have that, as we age many of us develop leaky valves.

The gasping for breath does sound like sleep apnea or a DVT that broke off and logged in your lung, A chest X-rat probably would show if this is lung issue. . I had a Pulmonary Embolism ten years ago...six months on Coumadin. Similar to what you are describing.

Don't be surprised if the cardio sends you to a pulmonary guy or ENT for a sleep study and/or a CAT scan of your lungs. The cardio may also want to do a nuclear stress test. . All of these tests take time. Make sure you follow up.

Since your blood work a chest x-ray are normal there a good chance that your problem is highly treatable (sleep apneas or AFIB). Let's see what the cardiologist has to say. Come visit with us again soon, and let us know.

Eternity welcome to the a-fib group.

Im not sure exactly what a mild case of a-fib is. Do you know when you are in a-fib? Are you in and out? Is it the a-fib that wakes you up in the middle of the night?

All the unknowing factors make the whole thing a bit more frightening which, unfortunately can make the a-fib seem (and therefore BE) worse. Try to mentally calm down (some people do yoga here and it seems to help). It sounds like you might have other health issues going on and its good that you will be seeing a specialist soon, he/she should be able to zero into whats causing the shortness of breath and sleep problems (although both can be connected to a-fib its not a given). Try to roll with the flow and be sure to ask questions so you know whats going on (I find knowledge very comforting I think its a waste of time worrying about what ifs).

There is a doctor (Dr. John Mandrola) who has had a-fib and is a cardiac electrophysiologist (http://www.drjohnm.org/). He believes that lifestyle changes can help in the majority of a-fib cases, so if you need to it might be time to look at what you are doing: are you overweight, what do you eat (junk food, soda and processed food are NOT healthy) or on the other side of the pendulum are you an overachiever (marathon runner, sports and training)? Any number of things could send your health into a spiral. You are 39 (young), LISTEN to your body and then do what you can to make it (and you) feel better.

Most of us have been though some of what you wrote about. In the beginning I was frightened (until I knew that the a-fib wasnt going to kill me) Ive woken up in the middle of the night feeling like an elephant (not pink) was sitting on my chest turned out to be a medication I was taking Although there are some pretty big parallels with a-fib everyone is truly individual in terms of causes, triggers and solutions.

I hope this helps
Take care and carpe diem,
across the pond (atp)

You have come to the right place for support and information.
I'm sorry you are going through this...but welcome!
An echocardiogram would diagnose the valve regurgitation. If you were in afib at the time they would see that too. You also said you had an ECG that was normal? If it was truly normal then you were not in afib at the time it was done. It is very easy to diagnose afib on an ECG. So...you may be going in and out of afib.
I don't really know what they mean by "mild" afib. It seems to me you either have it or you don't....like being pregnant :)
During an episode of afib it is very common to feel short of breath and fatigued. Afib can sometimes cause chest pains and anxiety can cause all these same symptoms. And afib can certainly cause anxiety!
Did they put you on any medications? There are medications that can be helpful. Sometimes lifestyle changes can help.
As Paul said, mild regurgitation is not serious. They will likely just keep an eye on that. The cardiologist may want you to wear a monitor for a period of time (sometimes weeks) if you are going in and out of afib to get a better idea of what is going on.
Honest...you will be able to live well with this. Take care.

When I had trouble breathing just like you described I had a blood clot in each lung. I had been dismissing it for about a month until it got really bad. When I went to the ER they did a CT and saw the clots.

I hope you do not have the same thing. This is a good site to be on.

That was when I had foolishly refused to take a blood thinner.

The best of luck to you. Hopefuly it will be something simple.

I think he means mild symptoms and/or infrequent episodes. Over 50% of those with afib have sleep apnea. Yours sounds classic. Sitting up prevents the throat from closing. Your additional symptoms may be stress related. I also think you may have had so much anxiety in the doctor's office, you may not have heard everything correctly.

People go into the doctor's office and want to hear everything's fine and grasp on to words like "mild" and then go home and want to know every detail that is haunting them, then they go back in with questions they don't want to hear answers to once they get there and they just try to get out the door again before the doctor can give them bad news... eventually they calm down and ask all their questions.

Welcome! Glad you found us, Never heard "mild" used as a description for afib, maybe he meant paroxysmal which means occasional. So glad you are going to see a cardiologist. Not trying to scare you but for me I would not wait to go see about shortness of breath especially since it seems it is getting worse. I would be on my way to the nearest emergency room and tell them I have afib and can't breath. They should know to check for clots first thing, if they find nothing than that is good, well worth the trip and expense in my book.I had not yet been diagnosed with afib and had the breathing issue you speak of and it was worse the more I moved so I went to ER and that was when I was diagnosed with the afib and I did have some clots. I knew my heart was beating funny but I thought it was too much caffeine and cigarettes and it would pass,
Anxiety can cause all kinds of drama as well as the sleep apnea, please follow up and keep us posted!

If you only had breathing problems such as waking up gasping for breath, I'd say classic OSA (obstructive sleep apnea, where your lower jaw relaxes and obstructs your airway). But since you're having breathing problems in your waking hours, I would agree with everyone else and say get checked for a clot in your lungs. It sounds like your afib is secondary to all of that. A disruption in your air supply while sleeping can cause afib.

I'm glad that others are agreeing that OSA or a Pulmonary Embolism may be at the root of your problem. Pulmonary Emboli are NOT to be ignored, especially after air travel. If your breathing problem worsens during waking hours, I agree with Daisy, go to the ER.

Hi Eternity75, best wishes on your search for a diagnosis. I curious what your ejection fraction is -- this is a measure of how well your heart is pumping. It can easily be measured by non invasive ultrasound. Anxiety is also quite common with a-fib so don't be hesitant to ask about value of short term or low dose benzodiazepam therapy. Klonopin has helped me sleep through many a bout of a-fib. Best, Sean

Wow thanks for all of your replies.

As far as the "mild" a-fib goes, I likely heard that wrong. My dr said I have mild tricuspid regurgitation and atrial fibrillation, so I just applied the word mild to both because of the way he said it.

Yes I can feel when I am in a-fib. I have no idea how long I have experienced it and didn't think it was abormal, I just thought it was weird that I could feel my own heartbeat and would feel a fluttery feeling in my chest...but I was never concerned about it and figured everyone feels that. I remember when I went for the echocardiogram I kept thinking "I hope my heart does that weird fluttery thing so they can see it" and sure enough it did. I had 2 ECG's done within a 6 month period and neither of them picked up anything abnormal.

I read that a magnesium deficiency could cause breathing issues so I started taking supplements 4 days ago to see if it would help any. It took several days of taking 4/day at 250 mgs, but my breathing feels a bit easier and I have been able to sleep again without waking up gasping for air. I still feel slightly short of breath and I continue feeling the a-fib on a daily basis but I don't feel like I am struggling to breath or suffocating like I have been for the last week or so. So maybe magnesium is helping. My blood work all showed normal with regard to vitamins and minerals but I have in the past found that the ranges for what they call "normal" often aren't very accurate.

As far as sleep apnea, I rarely ever snore and if I do, I am so conscious of it that I actually wake myself up when I hear it (weird, I know). But my mom and 2 uncles have sleep apnea so maybe there is a chance I do too. As a child I slept 12 hrs a day and couldn't function with less than 12 hrs sleep. My mom took me to numerous doctors who all said everything was normal. For periods in adulthood I have been able to function with less than 12 hrs sleep but it seems to come and go. Currently I am back to requiring 12 hrs and often being tired even after that. I also have always had a lot of headaches, especially in the morning. So I hope the cardiologist will send me for a sleep apnea test as well. I also don't know if I feel a-fib while I'm sleeping. I know I feel it before sleeping at times. It seems to continue throughout my day. In the last few years there have been times when I have woken up like I just received a shot of adrenaline and I can't get back to sleep again because once that hits it takes hours to fall back asleep. Could this be from an a-fib episode while sleeping? I don't know.

I have been asked 4 times by dr's if I thought it could be anxiety. I do not think it's anxiety at all. I have nothing to be anxious about and spend a lot of time relaxing (due to feeling tired maybe), but certainly don't feel anxious about anything. Work is very low stress and I work alone. I didn't even really feel anxious when I was initially told about the heart issues. But my dr didn't give me much info and that has started to raise questions in my mind over the last few days.

I don't have any numbers from test results...I suppose I should ask for a copy or something. I have an appt with a cardiologist tomorrow so hopefully I will find out more answers. The blood clot in the lung is something I never thought of, but the breathing issues did seem to show up after the lengthy plane trip and the feeling of a heart attack right after it. I wonder if I should ask the cardiologist about that.

Thank you all for your advice and support!

Sleep apnea can be present without snoring. What you describe concerning waking up when you hear yourself snore is common with sleep apnea. The sound is actually coming from your throat and you wake up because it is a choke reflex. It's not the sound that wakes you up as you are drifting off. I experienced what you describe and I got a dental appliance for sleep apnea and no more choking, snoring, or sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is common for afibbers- 50%

petey

Definitely ask about having a sleep study. Morning headaches can be another indication of sleep apnea. As Petey said, sleep apnea and afib seem to have a connection.
I was told I have mild sleep apnea and the Dr was surprised because, as he said...I was the thinnest patient he had seen all week. I also use a dental appliance.
About anxiety....while you don't have anything to feel anxious about, many people have free-floating anxiety. It is not a conscious worry about something. It is more a feeling of unease, or physical symptoms like heart racing or feeling like you can't get a deep breath, even chest pain.
I hope you can get more clarity after a visit to cardiology. Best wishes

I am not heavy and have sleep apnea (mild, successfully treated with the dental appliance). I have the smaller lower jaw that has a tendency to drop back that many people with sleep apnea have, so yes, you can be thin and still have sleep apnea. Also, as you age, things in your palate/throat "loosen up" enough to cause sleep apnea too.

So I met with the cardiologist yesterday. He told me I DON'T have a-fib, just arrhythmia (don't really understand the difference). He was about to send me for a sleep study but I told him about chest pain I experienced after a long flight to Thailand and that my breathing difficulties gradually began on and on after that and have gotten worse with time. He cancelled the requisition for the sleep study and is now sending me for a CT scan of my chest because he suspects I could have a pulmonary embolism. I'm glad he is at least responsive to what I am telling him, as it seems so many doctors these days are dismissive and you have to fight for everything! Nervous about the CT scan. I am scheduled for it next week. Now it's a waiting game and trying to be patient and keep breathing!

Afib IS a type of arrhythmia. There are a bunch:

1) Premature (Extra) Beats (premature atrial contractions, or PACs and premature ventricular contractions, or PVCs).
2) Supraventricular Arrhythmias (Atrial Fibrillation, Atrial Flutter, and Paroxysmal Supraventricular Tachycardia)
3) Ventricular Arrhythmias (Ventricular Tachycardia and Ventricular Fibrillation)
4) Bradyarrhythmias
5) Miscellaneous (Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia (ARVD), Brugada Syndrome, Short Q-T Syndrome (SQTS), Ebstein's Anomaly in Adults, Bundle Branch Block, Heart Palpitations, Heart Block, Long Q-T Syndrome (LQTS), Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome (WPW))